Redwing (c) 2025 Tony Robinson
On Tuesday we relocated to Sewerby. It was drizzling at first, but luckily it didn’t last long. We went round the Hall Gardens. Stock Doves were very noticeable on the ground and they could also be heard “singing”. Other than them we eventually tracked down a couple of Goldcrests and a single singing Coal Tit. In various places of the Parkland Herring Gulls were busy paddling the ground attempting to bring worms to the surface.
We went down the steep steps to the beach, where Oystercatchers were quite easy to spot. After much searching we also saw a single Purple Sandpiper, 3 Turnstones & a Redshank. There was a stream of Cormorants flying out from the cliffs on to the sea.
Turnstones
Oystercatchers
Ditto
Herring Gull
Nuthatch
Ditto
Sika Deer

On Wednesday it rained on the whole journey, but it did stop when I arrived. Unfortunately, it was quite misty in places. There was blue sky at our meeting, but I’m afraid this was illusory, as the mist got thicker before the last person arrived. Despite the mist we were able to spot a few birds on the hedges, which included Reed Buntings, Yellowhammers & Chaffinches. Meanwhile, a large flock of Linnets circled in and out of the fog. Kay paid special attention to one bird, which on closer inspection proved to be a Brambling. We walked along the hedgerows a few times but the mist failed to clear, so we dropped into the village, where the visibility was much improved.
Miles saw a Grey Wagtail along the stream, whilst Brian spotted a Nuthatch. Looking over the estate gate Symon made the find of the morning when he spotted first one and then another Green Woodpecker feeding on the grass in the far distance. There were also Mistle Thrushes & a Redwing in this same area.
Kay’s Male Brambling through the Mist

When the pm group assembled the windless mist was ruffled by a cool breeze. The mist began to disperse, and the visibility increased beyond measure. We were then able to see the flocks of Linnet, the individual Yellowhammers and some assorted other finches. For some reason the Reed Buntings were much easier to spot when it was misty.
Chaffinch
Linnets
Linnets
Ditto
Linnets
Yellowhammers
Ditto
Buzzard
On Thursday the forecast wasn’t looking too good, so we switched to North Cave Wetlands. It was quite nice at first and we must have seen at least 40 species. We even had record numbers of some species. There was one group of 20 Greenfinches, and we saw more in other parts of the reserve, so the true figure was much higher. This represents the highest figure of Greenfinches I’ve ever seen at North Cave. We walked to the new hide first - the best birds there were a Red Kite and a fairly sizeable group of Redshank. After lunch the Red Kite had been replaced by a waterlogged Peregrine. The Little Owl was distantly visible in its tree as we left the hide. A gentlemen allowed us to look through his telescope, and we saw it a little better, but the scope was being affected by the wind. Unfortunately, the rain in the afternoon meant it remained hidden, presumably in its box.
Greenfinch
Record Shot of Red Kite
Record Shot of Distant Peregrine
Record Shot of Distant Little Owl
Redshank
We had good views of the confiding Redwing, but it stayed up its tree until the group had moved on. The 2 at the rear of the group were rewarded with a very confiding Redwing, whose photo could be captured on a mobile phone. Coincidentally, some of yesterday’s group, after visiting the Wolds had views of the same bird in better light. On the return journey one of the best sights was a plentiful flock of Curlews.
Redwing (c) 2025 Tony Robinson
Ditto
Redwing on a Mobile Phone (c) 2025 Jeremy Childs
On Friday we had to negotiate Storm Éowyn at East Park. We headed for the Parakeet patch first, and were lucky enough to find a pair not long after we located a now relatively scarce Collared Dove. We reached the lake, where we had good views of the Tufted Ducks. An immature Heron was on the second island with more Tufted Ducks surrounding it.
Collared Dove
Ring-Necked Parakeet
Moorhen [juvenile, left]
Tufted Duck - Drake
Ditto
Immature Heron
On the lakes we saw at least 9 Goosanders, but only 2 drake Pochard. They showed very well on the return trip. A male Blackbird seemed stunned at first, but did fly away eventually.
Goosanders
Pochard
Ditto
Blackbird
Bracket Fungus
Meanwhile, a Friday morning regular is currently in Costa Rica. Here’s a selection of the wildlife he has seen so far…
All these Costa Rica photos (c) 2025 Ian Puckering
Rufous-tailed Hummingbird
Motmot
Various Species on Hotel Feeders
Baby Viper
Little Raccoon
Poisonous Dart Frog Capuchin Monkey
Two-toed Sloth
Ditto
Hermit Crab
Butterfly sp.
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